Human developmental anatomy: Microscopic magnetic resonance imaging (mu MRI) of four human embryos (from Carnegie Stage 10 to 20)

Background and aim: Technological advances in the field of biological imaging now allow multi-modal studies of human embryo anatomy. The aim of this study was to assess the high magnetic field mu MRI feasibility in the study of small human embryos (less than 21 mm crown-rump) as a new tool for the study of human descriptive embryology and to determine better sequence characteristics to obtain higher spatial resolution and higher signal/noise ratio. Methods: Morphological study of four human embryos belonging to the historical collection of the Department of Anatomy in the Faculty of Medicine of Reims was undertaken by mu MRI. These embryos had, successively, crown-rump lengths of 3 mm (Carnegie Stage, CS 10), 12 mm (CS 16),17mm (CS 18) and 21 mm (CS 20). Acquisition of images was performed using a vertical nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer, a Bruker Avance III, 500 MHz, 11.7 T equipped for imaging. Results: All images were acquired using 2D (transverse, sagittal and coronal) and 3D sequences, either T-1-weighted or T-2-weighted. Spatial resolution between 24 and 70 mu m/pixel allowed clear visualization of all anatomical structures of the embryos. Conclusion: The study of human embryos p,mu MRI has already been reported in the literature and a few atlases exist for educational purposes. However, to our knowledge, descriptive or morphological studies of human developmental anatomy based on data collected these few mu MRI studies of human embryos are rare. This morphological noninvasive imaging method coupled with other techniques already reported seems to offer new perspectives to descriptive studies of human embryology. (C) 2014 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.